


Refractions

by BakaBeka



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Family, Friendship, M/M, Not Canon Compliant, considering what's come out, lots of OCs in here
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-19
Updated: 2016-03-19
Packaged: 2018-05-14 21:47:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5760061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BakaBeka/pseuds/BakaBeka
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Miraculous chest has to be filled sooner or later, and the world has decided on sooner. Not-so-slowly, people with their own unique Miraculous appear, and everyone realizes that, to quote Disney, 'it's a small world after all'.</p><p>Lots of OCs, and pretty OC-centric. Slow-ish builds. Any theories about the other Miraculous are being ignored here, because there are different ideas.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. [Enter: Blue Wave]

**Author's Note:**

> So this is 'Refractions', a story I've been working on with a friend for a while. I hope you enjoy. If you dislike original characters, this is not the story for you. You have been warned.

Olivia Thresher was no one special. Two years in Bordeaux in an attempt for her parents to get jobs hadn't worked out, so they'd moved back to Paris, and she'd immediately been surprised by the reports on Chat Noir and Ladybug. Who had known about these two being the newest superheroes around Paris? She'd gone back to school, and gotten herself into Françiose-Dupont College by pure luck, and had joined at the beginning of the year. It had taken her no time to become some degree of friends with Alya, who'd told her all of the best gossip quickly and told her who to stay away from. Marinette was quite nice as well, and the three of them got along well. Olivia had spent some time working with Marinette, critiquing her designs. They’d both had fun.

"And today-" Ms. Bustier announced, right at the beginning of the day, "We have an exchange student here from Lousiana. He's staying with Louis in the other class, but he'll be here for most of our classes. Thomas?" She poked her head outside, and a boy with brown hair and earbuds meandered into the room.

"Hello." He mumbled, and waved. "It's nice to meet you all."

"Thomas, could you go sit next to Rose?" Miss Bustier offered. "Rose, raise your hand, please."

"Uh, miss, if it wouldn't be too much trouble, could I sit closer to the front?" He asked, pointing to an earbud. "My hearing's not great." His French was slightly off to her, but that would be the Louisiana influence. "If you wouldn't mind?"

"Ah! Yes, of course…." She paused for a minute. "Ivan, if you could, would you move so Thomas could share with you?"

The boy nodded, shuffling papers for a moment, and Olivia glanced back down at her tablet. That photo was no good. Paris was beautiful, but it was so hard to express with a single snapshot. "Ah!" She smiled, stopping on one she'd landed by accident. There had been a bicyclist, and she'd stopped him and asked to take a photo of him stopping. It had turned out beautifully.

"Oh, what's this?" Kim looked over my shoulder, twisting the tablet to face him. "Cool photos, Olivié?"

"Oh-li-vee-ah." She pronounced her name carefully. "I thought you understood that, Kim. It's not all that good." "Are you kidding me?" He asked, passing her tablet forwards to Mylene. "Look at this!" Somehow, her tablet ended up across the room, being shown to everyone. She scrunched her nose when it reached Marinette. It had an adorable shot of her watching Adrien during class displayed, and it had gone far better than some of the other shots she'd tried for. No matter how much they’d become friends, people never really appreciated how she’d take random photos of whatever she found intriguing.

"Excuse me!" She asked, standing. "Could I have my tablet back, please?"

"Yes!" Marinette stood, bringing it over to Olivia. A small note was on the surface, with an email and the message 'Can I have a copy? -Mari'. She smiled at the girl, nodding. The nickname had been used by accident, but it was nice that Marinette had liked it. Carefully, she wrote it up and sent it, before pulling the drive out and replacing it in her camera quickly. It was a routine for Olivia, with the camera having been modified to hold the flash drive and not break anything. As the camera settled into place, the spare pocket on one side wiggled. Olivia shook her head, placing a finger over the opening, and turned back to her class.

Class carried on, until streamers wove their way through the classroom and began winding their way through the building. The class scattered, with Olivia dashing towards the fire stairs she'd found in the building by another classroom. As she passed open room after room, teachers were tied up by the streamers, becoming more and more tired, and small pods were growing around them. The students, she would bet, were in the same scenario.

"Party time!" A little child with a bunch of balloons tied to his back shouted happily, zooming around the school courtyard. "Come play with me! Balloon Boy is here to make everything a party!"

* * *

 

A flash of pale blue light, and the Blue Wave appeared on the scene, surcoat rippling behind her. "Hello?" She called, shaking her poi out. "Anyone?" To anyone who hadn’t seen her, the blue superhero held two metal balls swinging on ropes wrapped around gloved hands, had a blue suit with subtle rippling and gold hints, a ribbon-mask weaving together across her face, and a long braid tied with a matching bow. Her eyes were obscured by a grey filter over her eyes, and her left wrist had a golden bracelet with a stone set in it with an odd moving design. The entire outfit seemed like it was meant to be looked at through water, and the small droplets of ‘water’ on her shoes reinforced that. A few screams, and she dashed off, already using the poi to build up momentum in case she had to break things. As she neared her classroom, she saw Thomas holding the door shut against a streamer while Marinette tried to call for help. A fast swing of the poi sent the streamer flying to the ground. "All right, everyone out!" She ordered, pointing down the steps. "Let's get all of you away from these and outside fast!"

"Oooh!" Alya crowed, pulling her phone out. "Are you a friend of Ladybug's?"

The Wave thought for a moment, then responded. "I suppose so. However, what’s important right now is getting you outside!"

The class hurried down the steps, and scattered around the building, some people running after others. Instead of sticking around, the Wave tossed one poi up to the roof and pulled herself up almost as if she was attempting to run up the side of the building. She dashed around, trying to find a faster way up. Adrien, for his part, had barely escaped Nino when the Blue Wave dropped down beside him in an alley.

"Oh, hello!" She laughed, ducking around him. "Are you trying to help?" Before he could respond, she kept talking. "Do you think you could help? That's adorable! I'm used to this." Before he could do anything else, she'd swung the strange balls up and over a windowsill, vaulting inside.

"Plagg?" He asked, letting the Kwami roam free. "Do you know what that was about?" "I told you." The cat zipped out, looking at Adrien carefully. "There are other Miraculous holders." He stored the idea for the moment. "Never mind. It's more important to take care of this. Plagg, claws out!" He somersaulted into the building, past some of the classmates, with a big wave at Alya's phone. She had already started filming, and he knew the people following it would enjoy that. Besides, Chat was always flirting. Staying in character kept people off his tail. Heh, he’d have to use that, he thought. "Now, where are you." He muttered, dashing around the building in a mad panic. If his Lady was stuck in there, he had to break her out.

* * *

 

Ladybug dropped onto the roof, only to find the Wave facing off against what looked like a small boy. Chat Noir dashed up, a bit out of breath, but grinned when he noticed Ladybug's presence.

"All I wanna do is party!" The kid whined, and the Wave smiled at him.

"How old are you, then?"

"That doesn't matter!" He shouted, sending an immense amount of streamers at her. Instead of jumping, she danced around them, avoiding them all in fluid movements.

"Aw, kiddo, you've got to be better than that to catch me." She laughed. "What, no drowned cat puns, Chat?"

"You wish." He smirked, knocking a few ribbons aside as the kid pulled his popper again. "Now that my Lady is here, they'll be flowing nonstop."

"Chat, stop!" Ladybug had a stern demeanor, but smiled nonetheless. "Who is she?"

"Blue Wave." She smiled, flipping her hand in a polite salute. "And may I assume I am speaking to Paris' greatest heroes?"

"Well…." Chat grinned. "It'd be a-paw-ling if we weren't."

Ladybug rolled her eyes, ducking a streamer. "Anyways, we've got to defeat him!"

"Do you like this school a lot?" The Wave asked, dancing around a streamer, bending at the knees and twirling the poi furiously around her. The streamers were all deflected towards the ground, and she stood slowly.

"Naw." Chat jumped over a streamer, dashing towards the Akuma. "It's just where the Akuma is attacking."

-You know-, Plagg said into his ear, -if she's who I think she is, best not lie to her!-

"What?" Chat froze for a moment. "I'm not lying, I think."

Ladybug glared at him. "If you're done talking to yourself, could I have a hand?" She was short on patience, and it showed.

The Wave stood in front of her, fighting off any streamers while she tried to tug her yoyo out of a streamer. Chat darted over to help her, and the Wave advanced, twirling the poi around her arms and dodging up to Balloon Boy. "What upset you?" She asked, kicking at his propeller hat and knocking it off. "Did your parents do something wrong?"

"Everyone deserves a party!" The kid yelled, and she dodged an explosion from his popper.

"Ladybug!" She called, ducking behind a HVAC. "If you've got some luck, I think we could use it now!"

"Lucky Charm!" Ladybug tossed her yoyo into the air, and a boom-box fell into her hands. When she opened it, a CD was already inside. "What do we do with this?" As the three of them avoided attack after attack, she looked at everything around her. "Wave? What can you do to slow him down?"

The blue-suited girl paused, before ducking around to grab a bit of chain behind a small chimney. "Hmm." With a swirl of her arm and a snap, a ball of blue energy materialized on top of her finger. "Tsunami!" A touch to the chain, and suddenly the Wave held a large, heavy chain. "That'll work."

Chat whistled in approval. "And, my Lady, do you have a purr-fect solution?"

The Wave dashed over, tying the Akumatized child up. "How on Earth would you know when she has a solution?"

Chat leaned back on his pole, with a smirk. "She starts looking at you like you're stupid for not figuring it out."

"Chat, get the balloon!" Ladybug ordered, setting the boom-box aside and pressing a button. A piano rendition of 'Happy Birthday' played, and the kid stopped fighting the chains to listen.

"Catastrophe!" Chat gathered the bad luck into his hand, running across the roof and destroying the large blue balloon with a single swipe. On his descent, he grabbed a party popper out of his hand and tossed it to Ladybug. She pulled it apart, and before the black butterfly flew away, the yoyo was out and swinging. "I love this part." Chat muttered, leaning on his baton next to the Wave.

"Time to cleanse evil!" She caught it in the yoyo, pulling it back in.

"What?" Wave asked, looking at Chat oddly. "I'd heard Ladybug could purify the Akuma, but I thought he made it up!"

“Who?” Chat didn’t understand this new girl, with her constant questions and recklessness. Admittedly, she seemed like a nice person, but not in the middle of a fight. Ladybug opened the yoyo again, watching the now-white butterfly fly away with a wave.

"Mission accomplished!" Chat offered her a fist, and they bumped them.

The Wave had dived off of the building with the child who'd been freed from the Akuma in her arm. "Gotta go, guys!" She dashed away through the streets, holding him in her arms.

"Where's she heading?" Ladybug asked as they followed her through Paris. "Normally, they're fine on their own-"

"He's coughing." Chat sounded very serious, out of character for him. "I don't know!"

The blue superhero ducked around a line of people, only stopping in front of a nurse and placing the boy in her arms. "He's one of the children in with pulmonary cancer. I’m sorry I don’t know his name." She told the nurse, who immediately jumped into action. As Chat and Ladybug entered the building secretly, she slumped against the wall next to them. "Too often." The Wave sighed, before speaking English with a thick accent. "Why did he decide it was smart to torment me like this, Dorgo?" She seemed to listen for a moment. “Well, you know it’s not her. I promise, we’ll help her.”

"What do you mean, too often?" Chat blurted, saying the first thing that came to mind.

She turned slowly, anger shimmering in deep blue eyes. "Cat, you ought to keep your curiosity in check before you live out the saying. I have seen this method before, where Hawkmoth picks a terminally ill person and uses them to make it difficult for me to fight them fully." They stood in silence for a moment, until Ladybug decided to test her luck.

"So," Ladybug turned on the Wave with an odd glimmer in her eye. "Who are you?"

"What do you mean?" She laughed in a sudden mood reversal, swinging the poi around her as she spun on the spot. As soon as they struck together, sparks began flying, and she started performing more complex routines,with arcs of light "I'm a Miraculous holder, obviously. But what animal, is the question?" "Well, it'd be furr-tunate if you were going to tell us-" "Not important." Ladybug interrupted Chat, hand on her hip. "Why did you just appear here?" "Why not?" The Wave responded, and struck her poi together heavily. Sparks flew everywhere, vanishing before they hit anyone. "Even though I want to answer you, all I would ever say is that I'll find you two first." Before either of Paris' heroes could respond to the curious blue girl, she was gone, braid whipping behind her as the door closed.

 

 

After the tell-tale flash of blue light, another light flashed and vanished.


	2. [Enter: Predator]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2!  
> I hope you all enjoy!  
> Sorry if there's anything wrong with this. My friends and I have been checking it for mistakes, but we're sure to miss some.

In Thomas' mind, PE was only entertaining with other people. A swimming unit had taken up enough time, and now the teacher- Mr. Germain- had paired up his classes for a meet. It wasn't as much fun for him, considering how stupid some of his classmates were. Sabrina infuriated him the most, with her constant unwavering obedience for no reason. Chloe deserved none of it, with her flaunting and conceit.

"Thomas!" A little voice scolded him from under his collar. "Be positive!"

"Why?" He muttered, watching Chloe tell off a girl in Louis' class- Aurelie, he remembered her name was. "She's not exactly a good person, and I don't want anything from her. I think I'm fine."

"Desires for revenge or justice can attract Akuma as well! As long as it’s with ill intent." The voice squeaked.

Thomas shook his head, placing the hearing aids in his ears.

"Well, captain?" Aurelie demanded, shouting. "If you're not going to make her swim, it can't be considered a test of everyone's skills!"

A couple people were standing by and watching, Thomas noticed, and more were staring at the boys in their swimsuits. He didn't exactly mind, but it wasn't as important.

"Well, fine!" Aurelie announced, storming off into the girl's' locker room and slamming the door.

Chloe laughed. "See, if she can't handle someone not wanting to participate, she shouldn't be on the swim team!"

"This is your fault, Chloe." Marinette accused her, pointing at the door. "Aurelie wasn't doing anything wrong!"

"Oh please," The girl sniffed. "She's fine."

"I am the Predator!" Someone screeched from inside the locker room, and a giant wave of water tossed the door off of its hinges, filling the pool and a large amount of the room. "And you will not leave the water!"

Another giant wave filled the room, sending almost everyone in the room flying. Thomas gripped his shirt collar, keeping a palm over his shoulder. People screeched, flailing and attempting to escape the whirlpool as the Predator pushed the whirlpool around. With a few fast strokes, he paddled out towards the door, opening it. Water rushed out, and a few people who were lucky fell out with him. Before anyone could run off, another figure fell out after them and dashed off towards the exit of the school.

"Whoa!" Rose shuddered, and shook her hair out. "Who was that?"

"More importantly, where are Ladybug and Chat Noir!" Chloe demanded, wringing her hair out. "And where can I find a decent bathroom!"

Thomas scoffed and ducked off, but not before he noticed a girl with a long braid and blue clothing running around in the room. She laughed, swinging two balls on ropes around her and jumping over waves of water.

The Wave wasn't upset with this villain. "Really, Mothman, you've outdone yourself this time. Thank you!" She jumped forwards, ignoring the waves of water rushing at her. "Oh, hello!" She tossed her hand up at the rafters, where a figure all in black crouched. "Do you dislike water, kitten?"

"Obviously." Chat Noir told her, swinging forwards and extending the baton to a person in the water. "What're we going to do?"

The Wave dodged a faster barrage of water, and jumped into the pool, submerging herself for a moment. "Well, I figured I'd fight her and get the Akuma out. Then, you two can do something."

"Hey!" Chat complained, jumping down next to her and immediately shaking his head furiously. "We're not that hopeless!"

The two of them dodged for a minute, not talking and running away from the Predator until they were outside.

A shadowed head poked after them, and then shook before vanishing back into the school. Instead of following, the way he wanted to, the figure walked away.

The fish-like Akuma cackled, running away from the building and dashing down the street. "Thank you!" She whistled, and jumped over the streets, dashing towards the Seine.

"No, you're not." The Wave agreed. "But we'll lose her."

Before Chat could argue against her, they took off in what Chat later dubbed a cat-and-fish chase towards the river. Waves of water splashed back towards them, sweeping people and cars away as the Predator ran for the river.

Once Chat had landed on a lamppost on the riverbank, smacking the fish-girl back every time she lunged for the water with his baton, and the Wave attacked, spinning her poi around the Akuma's ankles, attempting to fell her.

"What, are you losing patience?" The blue-suited girl taunted, jumping over an arm and straddling her neck. "Is this annoying the fishie-fish?"

"Oh, please." The Predator mocked, grasping her ankle and tossing the Wave backwards. She flew through the air, landing against Chat's lamppost, knocked it to one side. "I don't have to worry about the waves."

"Really, Wave?" Chat glared at her. "You're kind of hard to cat-ch!"

As the Predator took off, diving into the Seine, the Wave laughed. "Let's dive! See you, Chat, Ladybug!" She waved with one hand, before diving over into the water and swimming off.

"Ladybug?" The boy whipped around, falling backwards into the puddle. "Agh!" He shook himself off, getting water everywhere.

"What's going on?" She swung down, landing in the water and immediately jumped away onto a ledge. "Why is there water everywhere?"

Chat shook his head. "There was an Akuma-girl, and that Wave went chasing down the Seine after her."

"In the water?" Ladybug was shocked that the girl had just gone into the water. "But she can't breathe there!"

"Yeah, I know." Chat agreed. "I don't know where they're going, either."

Ladybug thought for a moment, considering what could have happened. Even if she had seen where the Akuma had originated, she didn't know if it would try and return or target them instead of the Wave. "Chat, you stay on the left bank and try and find them, and I'll take the right bank." She finally decided.

They split, running away to try and track down the person suffering from Hawk Moth's control.

After almost ten minutes of attempting to avoid getting caught up in any sort of press and find what they were looking for, their communicators buzzed. Flipping them open, Chat and Ladybug saw flashes of Parisian homes and water, along with a blue full-face mask.

"Ok, this better work!" The Wave demanded, bringing her communicator up to her face. "I think she's down for a minute. I could use the help! Every single time I get close to the Akuma- it's in her pin on the right wrist- she manages to get away."

"Whoa, whoa!" Chat told her. "Stop dodging for a second!"

"Can't." She twisted oddly, sending the image spinning crazily. "Stop. Moving." Almost every word was punctuated by a rotation or duck underneath something. "At. The . Moment."

"Well, where are you." Ladybug stepped up into the leadership position quickly.

"Right bank, by the-" The image cut around to reveal a strip of shops and small streets slowly flooding. "Here." The communication cut out suddenly, and both of them took off towards the location she'd specified.

Ladybug arrived first, barely avoiding a wave of water as Predator tossed it at the Blue Wave. She dodged, landing behind the other girl, spinning her yoyo. "What's going on?" She dodged a bit of water, and landed in front of the Predator. A lucky hit of her yoyo sent the Predator flying backwards.

"I can't keep her down long enough to get the Akuma off of her!" The Wave laughed, ducking into the water and using the poi to jump over her head, attempting to grab the small trophy-shaped pin. "But see, she's not stupid."

"Lucky Charm!" Ladybug summoned an object, and a hairdryer fell down into her hands. "What good does this do?"

Chat landed behind her, grabbing Ladybug around the waist and pulling her up to the rooftop before she could get drenched. "I don't know, but you might want to pay more attention!"

"Sorry! I can't exactly block the water! " The Wave called up. "Hey, Predator!" She dashed up the side of a building, swinging her weight over behind the fish and looping her ankles together with the poi. "Do you have a problem with me?" The Wave didn't know what to say, just to keep asking questions. The Predator tossed a blast of water at her, aiming for her stomach. "Whoaaa!" She went flying, barely landing up with the other two. Somehow, the poi had kept themselves wrapped up, and now Predator was hanging off of a wire, although not for long.

Ladybug pointed Chat towards the lampposts along the street. "Can you get those into a barrier here?"

"It's paw-sible." He joked, summoning Cataclysm and leaping off. He slashed through the bases, causing the poles to collapse and block off the street. "Ready?"

"Well, I've still got my Tsunami." Wave summoned the blue ball of energy with a graceful gesture around her body and a snap. "What are you planning on doing?"

Ladybug held up the hair dryer. "If she's a fish, then doesn't she need to stay wet?"

The Wave laughed, keeping her hand away from anything that could touch it. "I see! You really are lucky, Ladybug. Last time I tried that on a water-based Akuma, they dodged it."

Chat ran around the Predator, dodging furiously and striking her with the baton. "Any time now would be purr-fect!" He yelled.

"Let's go." Ladybug vaulted down, turning the hairdryer on as soon as Predator launched herself at the barricade of poles. As hot air blasted out, the Wave pressed the blue magic to the nozzle. Instead of the hot air wafting away the way it normally would, scalding winds blew across the street, drying the Predator out instantly.

"Well, kitten? Think I'm good enough?" The Wave flipped a bit of Chat's hair up over his ear jokingly. Before he could do anything, she ran forwards and snatched the pin up, breaking the superheated metal with a clench of her hand. As Ladybug reached for her yoyo, the Wave snatched the Akuma up and held onto it. Before either of the less experienced heroes could claim the Akuma and purify it, the Wave had shoved it into a box nearby and sat on top of it. "That ought to do it."

"Um, Wave?" Ladybug stepped up, reaching for the box. "I'll purify it, if you'd just…"

"Let it return to Hawk Moth to become another Akuma?" She scoffed. "It's got a goal; they all do. From what I know, if it's black, it needs to find him again. It'd be easier to use it to track him back."

"But we can't leave evil out in the world!" Chat argued, coming to his Lady's defense.

The blue girl slumped for a moment, seeming to talk to herself. When she moved again, she was stiffer, more inflexible than a wave should ever be. "Chat, if you want me to listen to your stances on Hawk Moth- actually, you know what? Here." She tossed the box up in the air, watching without moving as Ladybug purified the butterfly. Her bracelet gave off a small beep, but she ignored it to glare at both heroes.

Once they had realized she was glaring at them, Ladybug and Chat Noir turned to face her.

“Well?” Chat demanded, leaning forwards. “Cat got your tongue?”

“You two are the most irresponsible people I’ve ever met.” She hissed, swinging the poi back and forth in an intricate pattern, movement fueled by anger. “Sending his butterflies back to him!”

“What do you mean?” Ladybug tried to regain control again, but this girl kept interrupting the usual dynamic with her blunt ideas and all-out style.

“From what I know about Hawk Moth,” The Wave tossed a poi up, catching it as it spiraled down, barely keeping it from hitting the ground as she spoke. “He can turn any butterfly made- which would be any white one- into an Akuma. And instead of lowering the number he has access to, you keep sending them back to him!? What did you think happened to them after they are purified? What did you think kept creating the Akuma?”

None of them had much to say once she'd finished, so the Wave spoke again when she heard her bracelet beep twice in urgency. "I have a question for the both of you. If you found more Miraculous, including me, did you ever consider that we might be able to aid you? Or trust us? Did you even think we existed?"

Neither Ladybug or Chat Noir responded, and they stood in silence. The Wave clenched her fist, and Chat noticed it trembling.

"Fine. I will give you three bits of information, since your Kwami seem to be neglecting your safety in favor of respecting your wishes. Firstly, there are seven Kwami in the world, a family of sorts. Second, we all have a call to the place the Kwami prefer. Wherever it is, if more than two Miraculous are there, the rest will follow. Be prepared. And finally, you two work better together than any other combination in the family." She tossed her poi up over a roof, and raced away before either of them could react.

* * *

 

Once they had all de-transformed, Adrien grabbed Plagg and closed himself in a closet. "What did she mean, seven! Family?"

Plagg coughed. "Cheese! I need food, Adrien!" He gobbled down what was offered, and sighed. "The Wave is always the nosy one. She was right, though. We're a family, with our own romances and bonds. And usually, if the Miraculous all exist at the same time, they tend to become one as well."

Adrien took the information in, thinking. "Does that familial tendency change things about us?"

"No!" Plagg shook his head. "It's never us making you all a family. Besides, considering your luck, I daresay you wouldn't complain." Adrien glared at the little cat, shoving him into a pocket. "Ouch, okay, I'm sorry!" He poked his head out. "I just meant that since you've had bad luck in your life, to be happy about this!"

"Not helping, Plagg." He told the kwami, before striding back into school, shivering a bit at the water everywhere. "Why did the cat have to rub off on me?"

"Hey, at least I'm not cold-blooded." The black kwami protested. "They sleep longer than I do in the winter!"

He walked back into class, taking his seat. A small click sounded, and he turned to see Olivia, a somewhat quiet girl flipping through a series of something on her tablet. Kim nudged her, and she looked up to see him looking at her. She giggled, and held the tablet, displaying a photo of Nino with a series of bubbles surrounding him perfectly. Instead of sitting back down, Adrien walked up to them, standing by Olivia. "Wow." He remarked, looking at a series of photos as she flipped through. "Some of these look better than Pierre's."

"Thank you." She continued scrolling. "Although if your photographer can't beat a 15-year-old girl who works off of less than minimum wage for whatever she finds online, I shudder at the industry's state."

"No way." Adrien shook his head. "You just have a talent for seeing people and photographing, I guess."

"Thanks, conch." She grinned, eyes glinting with the test. Adrien couldn't see her feet bouncing below the desk from nerves.

"Shell?" He asked her. "Why?"

Olivia placed her camera away after two more photos, and looked up at him. "You have less of a social life than Marinette, and that girl is hiding away from almost everyone right now, except maybe Alya. And maybe me."

"Really?" Adrien seemed shocked by that information.

"You know, leaving school at random times for photo shoots is not normal, and does in fact interfere with how people view you, despite being a handsome model." She passed him the tablet, showing people glaring at the limo as he clambered in, bodyguard holding the door. "The jobs I've seen, the models have usually been the ones choosing the shoots. And if they're as close to the photographer as you could be, they'd easily be able to schedule so it doesn't interfere with education."

"Olivié, are you trying to get Adrien to hang out with you for a date?" Kim needled, shoving the girl in her shoulder, sending her bracelets jingling.

"It's Olivia." She glared at Kim, and Adrien guessed this must be annoying for her. "I don't want to date anyone. I'm giving him advice on getting his life to be normal."

"Why?" Kim asked her again.

"I'm not deaf, idiot." Olivia switched to a different photo collection, which all seemed to be architecture around the city and plaques that had been put up around the city. "He's got a giant manor, Mari says he doesn't have family, just staff and this one secretary. If that's the case, no one is even bothering to help him, and as if I haven't heard the Bubbler story. Someone needs to provide common sense." She took a deep breath, and stopped suddenly, looking at her feet. The photo left onscreen was a plain, with fences and a few animals running around.

"Cat got your tongue?" Adrien asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Olivia looked up at him suddenly, with a start, like she'd just remembered something odd. "No way." She went back to being sweet suddenly, apologizing for talking to him. Before Adrien could protest, she'd gotten up and left.

Before Marinette had even managed to enter the classroom, Olivia walked out in a rush, grabbing her wrist and Alya's and pulling them off into an empty classroom across the hall.

"I had an idea." She blurted, and fiddled with her bag strap.

"Well?" Alya demanded. "I thought we were doing a runway with Marinette's clothing at her place tomorrow."

"But none of the boy's clothing is being tested, right?" Olivia asked, looking at Marinette.

"No…" The shorter girl looked around. "What did you think of, Olivia?"

"Why not invite Adrien and Nino to help us out?" She pushed out. "Adrien could 'judge' our modeling, and Nino could model with us. I know it’s not really polite for me to invite people to your thing, but... "

Marinette went bright red, and Alya cackled. "Well, then, the Australian finally has an idea!" Olivia grinned in relief, but groaned when Alya continued. "Hey, maybe we'd ask Oscar to help too."

"No way!" Olivia denied that idea with one breath. "Oscar has to help Mom with running numbers tomorrow, and today he and I both have deliveries. But, Mari, Alya, could you two ask the boys?" She asked, grasping her camera in one hand and releasing it.

"Yeah, absolutely." Alya agreed quickly. "Now, let's go! Class is starting."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!   
> Until next chapter, guys.  
> -Beka


	3. [Enter: Oscar]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3, hmm.  
> I shouldn't be putting this up at all, since I've only got 6 chapters finished, and only 4 of them beta'd fully. Oh well.  
> I hope you all enjoy!  
> Also, because I've probably forgotten this, italics mean someone is speaking in English, and dashes surrounding words mean it's telepathic speech.  
> Allons-y!

Paris' streets were nice to drive through, if the narrow sidewalks weren't too much of a bother. Although sitting in the large delivery truck meant that Olivia was shoved around by Oscar as their dad drove.

" _Olive, are you sure this is the right place_?" Her dad asked, pulling over in front of Tom  & Sabine Boulangerie-Patisserie.

" _We've been here before, Papa._ " Olivia sighed, placing the map back in a pocket. " _I don't know why you still think we need a map._ "

" _Aw, Olive, don't blame Dad that you're the best at navigating!_ " Oscar teased her, an elbow flying into her gut.

" _Why, you!"_ Olivia jumped on him, tickling her brother's weak spots. " _You have spent just as much time in Paris as I have!_ "

" _Children!"_ Their mother, Ophelia, scolded them. " _Behave! Owen, get ready to unload."_ The truck stopped in front of the store, and before Oscar could grab her braid, Olivia had jumped out of the truck and knocked on the door to the bakery.

"Marinette!" She called, knocking again. "Delivery! Mr. Dupain, Mrs. Cheng?"

"Ah, Olivia!" Mrs. Cheng came down the steps, and opened the door. "Marinette's up on the roof. I'll go get her."

"Please do!" She smiled, and gestured to the truck. "And Mr. Dupain, if you don't mind? We have the delivery for you."

"Absolutely. Will we see you tomorrow for Marinette's little get-together?" She asked, opening the door.

"I wouldn't miss it." She promised, turning back to the car. " _Just a minute, and then we can unload!_ "

Mrs. Cheng vanished back up to the house part of the shop, and Olivia sat down on the step. She would be running soon, and the more rest she got, the better.

"Olivia!" Marinette's window flew open. "Hi!"

"Hello." She called back up. "This is our last delivery, so I can hang out if you want."

" _Olive! Hurry up!"_ Ophelia yelled at her. " _We need to get the flour in quickly, and it will go faster if you help us!_ "

" _Coming! Don't you dare send Oscar after me!_ " Olivia yelled back, looking up at Marinette. "If you come down, I will personally tell Adrien you gave him that scarf he wears."

Her friend blushed, but shut the window. By the time Olivia had rejoined her family in the back and had began unloading, Marinette was lifting a giant sack of sugar and carrying it into the back area.

"Strong, for a designer!" Olivia called after her, picking up a sack of cherries and placing it in the large fridge.

"And you too, photographer!" Marinette teased. "Can you handle this?" She plonked a box of fruit into Olivia's arms, followed by another box, and then eggs.

"You'd think after taking over for the deliveries, Olivia, this would be an old game for you two." Tom joked, passing by with a crate in his arms and quickly unloading it. "But it never gets old."

"Course not!" Marinette laughed. "It's fun."

Tom headed back out, leaving the girls in the kitchen to talk.

" _Olivia_ !" Mrs. Thresher called, finally, and Olivia heard the engine rev. " _Are you going to be able to find a way back?_ "

" _Yes, Mom!_ " She yelled. "Do you mind having me over for a bit, Mrs. Cheng?"

"Not at all." The shorter woman stepped aside, letting Olivia go up to the house. "Have fun, you two!"

"Olivia, could you help me out with this?" Marinette pushed her door open, revealing the pink room and a floor covered with fabric, templates, thread, scissors, and any other type of fashion tool possible. A mannequin was propped up on Marinette's couch, half-wearing a shirt with a pocket partially sewn on.

"With what, chaos?" Olivia laughed, eyes glittering with tears. "Just because you are going to invite Adrien, did you pull out all the stops?"

"Maybe." Marinette blushed a little, but straightened up. "But I need to get these pieces of fabric cut properly, and organized. Can you help me, please?"

Olivia plopped down onto the floor, picking up bits of fabric. "I'll start with the same fabrics, OK? Can I see the designs?" She began piling larger pieces of thick fabric together, and Marinette sent her an odd look. "I may not be a designer, but I can spot the differences. Besides, fashion photography teaches you to look at clothing properly."

"Then,can you work with Alya's clothing?" Marinette passed over a couple of pages, and began sewing the pocket onto the shirt with care. She was instantly focused, not bothering to move a pile of clothing with names labeling them.

Olivia picked up a skirt with no attachments, the only label a bit of embroidery reading 'Marinette' in pretty red thread and a ladybug as the dot on the 'i' just inside the hem.  It had a pretty piece of sky-blue tulle layered over itself on top of a piece of satin, creating an illusion of a gradient to a more intense blue, and another piece under it in a darker shade to bring the gradient to a night-sky blue. "Marinette, this is beautiful!" She remarked, placing it down and moving a bit of deep red thick fabric to a pile of similar fabric, pinning it into place.

"It took me a while to get some of these finished, and longer to get the fabric." She admitted, moving over to the sewing machine and running bits of fabric through it. "And Nino's things requires printing or embroidery, so they've taken me more time." A bit of golden thread soared across the room, landing in the trashcan, followed by a ball of elastic. "But Adrien's have to be perfect!" She fretted.

Olivia marched over, placing both hands on Marinette's shoulders and spinning her around. "You know, he won't mind if it isn't perfect. You may want to be a professional, Mari, but you're still learning."

"But-"

"I don't know." Olivia cut her off. "You have enough already, Mari. If you want, we can finish these that you have left out, but no more." The taller girl picked up the sketchbook, closing it and putting it away. "It's this chest, right?" She picked up a box decorated with spare bits of fabric that created a pretty collage, moving it into the center of the room. Opening it, Olivia began to pull out item after item, tossing them into piles. "You have plenty, Marinette!"

Slowly, she picked up the clothing, putting it with the other finished ones and went back to work pinning the cut-out fabric in place and passing it over to Marinette and taking from her to do simple clean up and putting them into the appropriate piles. Before they knew it, everything was finished, and the sky outside was dark.

"Marinette? Olivia?" Mrs. Cheng called up the steps. "Food is waiting for you!"

"We'll be down in a few minutes, Mrs. Cheng!" Olivia had no qualms about responding for Marinette this time. They'd climbed up to the rooftop balcony, and Marinette was checking her plants while Olivia photographed the night. It was quiet, until Olivia's lens spotted a black figure crouched across a street. It flashed, catching the blond hair and black suit of Chat Noir.

"Mari?" She asked, turning the camera so her friend could see it. "You've got company."

"What?" Marinette fussed, looking over. "Why today?!"

Olivia grinned, barely containing her laughter. "So this is common?"

"You heard about the Evillustrator?" Marinette was talking rapidly, attempting to fill in for Olivia. Despite the negative response, she kept going. "Well, Ladybug asked Chat to watch out for me during the fight, since he was targeting me, and he's come back on occasion to talk and I-guess-he's-here-now?"

"Relax!" Olivia laughed, placing her camera away. "I won't use any of the pictures, then."

"No photos!" Marinette protested. "Please?"

"Fine." She slumped back onto the ground, placing her camera down and removing the lens. "I won't photograph this."

"Good." Chat Noir startled her, falling off of the roof behind them onto the ground. "Because I don't need news that I visit people going viral."

"And he doesn't need the ego boost." Marinette stage-whispered. Before Chat could protest, Olivia began giggling. "What's so funny?"

"I know!" Chat agreed. "I haven't even started with the cat puns yet!"

She kept laughing as Marinette berated him for 'not having a sense of humor', bopping his nose when Chat froze like a deer in headlights.

"If you two are finished arguing like a married couple?" Olivia finally managed to cut in, ignoring the glare Chat cut her. "I thought you would introduce me, Marinette?"

"Well.." The girl fidgeted. "I don't know if that would be a good idea."

"Nervous to share your pet with a friend?" She taunted, resting an arm over Marinette's shoulder. "Don't worry!"

"Well, then." Marinette's confidence came flooding back suddenly. "Chat, this is my friend Olivia, and she goes to my school. Olivia, this is Chat Noir, one of Paris' superheroes."

"So, would you like me to pretend to be a fangirl, or simply skip to the part where I threaten you for hanging around my best girl friend?"

Chat perked up at the mention of fangirl, but Marinette's squeak drowned it out. "Olivia! Don't threaten the superhero! I'm sure he doesn't have any bad intentions!"

"Still." The girl was at the same height as Chat in the small 3-cm heels she liked wearing in the winter. "Why are you hanging around Mari? Do you like her?"

"No!" Chat flailed his hand in an attempt to seem suave, but Olivia had started to look at him funnily. "Are you hiss-terical?"

"No. What do you want with my friend?" Olivia had let her smile drop for a minute.

"Ladybug asked me to protect her!"He jumped aside, away from Olivia. "I'm doing what I was asked."

"Oh, so you li~ke her?" Olivia teased, relaxing back into herself.

"No!" Both of the others on the balcony denied furiously. "No way!"

"He's too annoying!"

"She's such a worrywart!"

Olivia sat down next to her camera, wiping off the lenses. Reflexively, Chat jumped away when she angled it around. "Yeah, sure, you two. Don't worry, I'm not photographing anything right now. This is just the camera lens."

"They come apart?" Chat sidled closer, carefully reaching over to poke it. "I didn't know that."

"Well, kitten, you must have some brains somewhere. How do you think photographers get those ultra-close shots?" Olivia passed him a longer one. "Telephoto lens. I was using that to try and get some people tonight." She produced an oddly distorted lens, cleaning it. "That's right, Mari, can I test out my shots with the newer portrait lens tomorrow? I just want to use the tripod and take a few practice shots."

"If you can set it up, absolutely." Marinette told her, finishing with the plants and joining her friends at the railing. "I'd like to see how the clothing photographs."

"Beautifully." Olivia whispered.

Chat caught it, but said nothing to her. "Oh, so you're doing something tomorrow?"

"If the boys agree, we're staging a fashion show. It's Alya's idea; and i still have to ask the boys." Marinette flipped a bit of her hair over one shoulder, watching Paris.

"Which boys?" Chat asked curiously.

"Nino; he became the Bubbler, you remember that." Marinette went oddly silent, looking around as if to avoid Olivia suddenly.

"Anyone else?" She prompted, sticking her foot out in front of her and packing up the camera bag.

No response.

"Adrien Agreste, another classmate." Marinette finally admitted. Chat thanked his night vision at the moment- she was blushing furiously. "I'm hoping he can at least provide a bit of advice, if I can talk to hii!" She tripped on Olivia's foot, which vanished before either Chat or Marinette noticed it had been there. Before she hit the deck, Chat had jumped to catch her. As they stood awkwardly, Olivia dropped down through the trapdoor, bag over one shoulder.

"Olivia?" Mrs. Cheng opened the door. "Where's Marinette?"

"She got a phone call. Give her a minute?" Olivia asked, sweet smile on her face.

"Of course." Sabine was more than willing to leave her daughter be for a minute.

"Thank you!" Olivia popped her head up to the balcony, seeing Chat and Marinette talking. Instead of interrupting, she poked her head back down, sitting in Mari's chair and spinning wildly. The bag flew open, and before anything escaped, she closed it quickly. As her braid settled down, the blue bow barely brushed the head of a red Kwami who observed the girl sitting in her Holder's room.

-Interesting,- Tikki projected. -You always do like to inform them fully.-

A chattering voice was projected back at the Kwami. -But then they can't be truthful in what they can do.-

-They could learn,- Tikki argued. -Mine always do.-

-And at what cost?- It responded, going silent when Marinette climbed back down.

"Olivia, were you waiting long?"

"Only long enough to see how badly you have it, sweetheart." She laughed, and the two of them proceeded down to eat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any questions, feel free to ask me, and I hope you enjoyed reading Refractions Chapter 3!  
> Still writing,  
> -Beka


	4. Enter: Dorgo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I just watched Volpina, and considering what Thomas Astruc hinted at there, I'm changing this to an OC AU.  
> Although I doubt many people are that interested in why, if you watch the episode, you'll see.  
> But back to their adventures.  
> I hope you all enjoy!  
> -Beka

School was tedious for all three of the girls that day, with Alya nervous about Nino, Olivia nervous about her photos, and Marinette nervous to ask Adrien. Class wasn't easy to focus through, but they managed until the teacher left, and Olivia all but shoved the girls towards the boys.

"Go on!" She whispered, grinning to herself. "Just say it."

"U-uh, hello." Marinette managed to stutter out, hands flying everywhere in her nerves. "I-i-i was wondering, do you have p-pl-plans tonight?"

"I don't think so."

Olivia snickered, superimposing Chat onto the suddenly controlled blonde. He really is different, she realized, and it's not his fault.

"What are you surprised by?" A little kwami with blue skin and a fin on top of his head poked out of her camera bag, flying up to hide in her hair bow.

"Look." She murmured, barely moving her lips. "They're always a good couple, right?"

"I'm not telling!" He squeaked happily, dodging a half-hearted flick from Olivia.

"T-then, if you could, would you help us out?" Marinette forced out before Adrien could leave, shooting glances over at Olivia. Probably an S.O.S. message of sorts.

"Us?" Olivia frowned. "If she calls me over there, what will I do?"

"Improvise." He told her, and dove back into the bag. "You know that."

"We're having a little party and testing out some of my designs, and I'd really appreciate if you'd come!" Marinette blurted suddenly, face slowly turning pink. "I'd love to have someone with experience commenting on things!"

"What she means is-" Olivia walked over, but Adrien wasn't listening.

"Of course." He smiled, and Marinette must have melted inside, because there was absolutely no response.

"Well, what's happening is that Mari had some spare clothing, so we're trying it out and hanging out at her house. Here-" Olivia took his phone, entering the address. "This is the place."

Once he'd left, Marinette did melt into her friend, legs giving way. "Oh-my-goodness-did-he-actually-agree-to-do-this?"

"I'd say yes."Olivia dragged her friend carefully to a bench, sitting with her and watching Alya argue with Nino. "Are you ready to have a professional model critique your clothing?"

"Yes!" Marinette was suddenly filled with determination, bouncing back up. "I can't wait!"

Olivia grinned, watching the girl run over to Alya and drag her away. "This is almost as much fun as Oscar was with Otto." She leaned back into the bench, seeing Nino sling an arm over Adrien's shoulder and head towards the girls.

"Do you miss them?" Her kwami poked back out, stopping in her palm this time. "I know it was hard, but he's got to be happy now."

"Maybe." Olivia relaxed. "But I can't help but think that I'm getting to be the big sister again. Ladybug's good luck must've rubbed off."

"You bet!" He flipped, turning into a blue blur around the end of Olivia's braid. "Besides, I've got the big-brother vibe, too."

"Really now." Olivia raised an eyebrow, closing one hand around the kwami. "I thought you all were just friends."

"Three thousand years makes you all pretty close." He squeaked, jumping up. "We've got a problem!"

Olivia raised an eyebrow, shaking her bracelet in an indicative manner.

"No, but soon. One of the Akuma is out, but I don't know where it's fastened yet."

"How soon, Dorgo?" She stood, carefully holding the dolphin and her phone so he looked like a phone ornament, and leaving the school quickly. "They aren't going to know anything about this one, are they."

"Let's go solo again!" He cheered, whirling in place. "I ate enough jello already."

Olivia shook her head, vanishing around a corner. "Dorgo, _let's dive_." She commanded, and he dove into the dark stone in the middle of her bracelet. The links jingled as the Wave's blue suit spread out across Olivia's body, until the mask had whipped into place. The Wave was in action.

Her poi, when she applied the flick used to open the communicator to the little shell button, displayed a map of Paris with a deep pink blip on screen. Memorizing the location, she jumped up, heading off and swinging past a classroom window.

"Now, where is Olivia?" Ms. Moreau asked, opening the textbook to where she'd left off. "She usually doesn't miss English, after all."

"I think she had a urgent phone call." Alya decided. "She was leaving the building while on her phone."

Marinette looked down quickly, seeing Tikki tug at her pant leg. "Marinette!" She whispered. "There's an Akuma!" Marinette couldn't respond, but she raised an eyebrow in shock. "We need to go help!" A shake of the head. "But!"

"Someone's going to have to go inform the principal about this." Ms. Moreau continued. "Adrien?"

He agreed quickly, walking out of class rapidly and releasing Plagg as soon as no one was looking. "Where are we going, Plagg?"

"I don't know." The kwami's ears sank for a moment. "But a bit of cheese would help."

"Greedy." Adrien scoffed, producing a small bag of cheese and offering a piece to the cat. "Now can we go?"

"It's over by Sacre-Cœur." Plagg mumbled, swallowing the cheese. "Now we can go."

"Plagg, transform me!"Adrien never failed to be in awe of the black suit and all it did for him. "Let's go hunting."

He always liked the rooftops, just for the freedom, but as he ran along the Seine, a flash of blue darting in and out of the water caught his attention. When he stopped for a closer look, the figure torpedoed out of the water, landing on the street. She shook the water off, braid flying for a moment. As she passed a hand over her mask, it receded back from her mouth into the usual blue mask she wore.

"Hello, kitten. Where are you heading?" The Wave asked, brushing a bug asides. "If it's where I think," She continued when Chat didn't respond. "We'd best hurry before they move on."

"How do you know where the Akuma is?" Chat asked, speeding up and running across the rooftops again, the Wave close behind him. She sped up slowly, and he began to follow, going faster.

"Better question." She decided.

"Fine… although it's a-paw-lling." He thought for a minute. "Why are you going on your own?"

They continued in silence, the hill coming into view. "Perhaps because I did so for years on end, taking care of people as best as I could. Ladybug has a nice easy way to end things, but I have my own method. And now, you're going to learn it, aren't you?" Her voice was awfully happy.

"I don't really want to." Chat muttered sullenly, still running. "I don't have to know how to deal with Akuma."

The Wave flinched. "Liar!" The word wasn't a threat, not the way she'd said it. All it seemed to be was reproachful. "You know how to deal with them.""

They ran in silence until Sacre-Cœur was in their sights. The two superheroes leaped over the fence into the monument, back-to-back, watching for the Akuma. People laid across the basilica's steps, all praying furiously to whatever they could, focused on that only. They entered the building carefully, Chat with his baton at the ready and the Wave anxiously spinning her poi.

"Well, this is disappointing." The Wave muttered as they approached the front, still on guard. A slight figure sat there, knelt on its knees, looking skywards. Black wings wrapped around their body, and black light was all but emanating from them. "Are they - praying?"

Chat nudged one of them with his foot, and nodded. "And I'd bet that-" He pointed to a wooden cross held between the angel's hands that glowed black to him. "Is the Akuma."

"You're probably right." The Wave swung a poi out, catching the cross and yanking it out of the hands of the man. It landed in her hand, and immediately fell to the ground. "Ouch! What the!"

"What happened?"

"God punishes all sinners, especially disbelievers." The figure stood, revealing a distinguished gentleman with a gray butterfly mask and a pinstripe-gray suit with the black wings. "My dear, have you blasphemed?"

Both superheroes looked over at each other, and the Wave shrugged. "God's not exactly interfering in my life much now, is he? I got this far already."

"But, child, you have such miraculous powers, they must be gifts from God." He argued, reaching over to her elbow.

"Doubtful." The blue superhero smashed the cross in her palm, grabbing the Akuma before it could fly away by the wings. The man fell backwards, and the black bubbled away from him, revealing a well-dressed cleric. Before the butterfly could absorb itself into anything on her, she'd stuffed it into a small box and held it shut. "Let's move." She dashed out of Sacre-Cœur, heading for the river.

"What do we do with the Akuma?" Chat asked, running after the girl. "It can't possess others!"

"I know!" The Wave was scared as well. Even if she'd done this before, it was still nerve-wracking. "Hurry, Chat!" She pulled a metal box out of a gutter where she'd stopped before. Quickly, she opened it and threw the Akuma, still enclosed in the box, into the other one, and unwound a bit of fabric from inside the metal box, placing it with the Akuma. She locked the box, putting the key up on a ledge. "This should hold it, if you have fire?"

"Um…." The boy looked around, seeing multiple ways if he destroyed things, but Ladybug wasn't there to clean up for him. "Oh!" A lighter was sitting out on a bench nearby, and he grabbed it, flicking the switch.

"Thank you!" The Wave smiled, putting her box down and summoning the ball of energy with an announcement of "Tsunami!" Touching it carefully to the flame, it roared up, and she placed the edges of the box in the flames. The lock melted, flowing along the cracks until the box was solid metal and had no cracks.

"And that holds an Akuma?" Chat looked at the box curiously. "I didn't know they could be trapped."

"Yeah." The Wave tucked the box under her arm. 

"So, if you're able to do all this without either Ladybug or I," He understood what her point was, but if she was truthful, he needed to hear it. "Why do you work with us? We're capable already."

She froze, turning slowly to look around. "Well, **that** is a very good question, Chat Noir. Perhaps I'll answer it when you understand why working with others is just as good as on your own. But here's a question of my own for you: Why does another person, with similar powers, continue to help a duo who were able to handle so much on their own already, with so much determination to protect Paris?"

Before Chat responded, the Wave had dashed off, following the same path towards the river, and when Chat caught up, she'd vanished under the water. He stopped, looking into the waters of the Seine for a minute, and then running back towards the school. "She's… interesting." He made up his mind. "If she wants to work with us, I'm more than happy to answer her questions."

Adrien dropped down into the school, running back towards the classroom. "Plagg, what is the Blue Wave's power?"

"I think their power is honesty." The Kwami's face twisted up for a moment. "Why do you care?"

Adrien just opened his pocket for Plagg, small grin spreading across his face. If he thought it through and remembered it when they fought next, the Wave may just be more helpful. And if she was truly as helpful as he thought, he and Ladybug may just be able to find Hawk Moth.

The classroom was still progressing with the next lesson, and when Adrien took a look in the window, Nino grinned, waving at him. No one else seemed to be out of place, but Olivia wasn't back yet, and Kim seemed to be completely preoccupied with joking around with Max behind him to notice anything wrong with that. She must've had something important to do, he reasoned, sliding back into his seat quickly.

"Where were you, man?" Nino asked, using his hood to hide the fact he was talking from the teacher. "Ms. Moreau was freaking out when the news about the Akuma was announced over the PA and you and Olivia weren't back yet!"

"Father was asking for me, but I told him I wanted to finish today first."

"But, Adrien! The girls!" He protested. "You said you'd go, too!"

"I know." He sighed, remembering that his father actually had asked for him to do a shoot after school for a small designer. "How am I going to get out of this now?"

Instead of letting the lesson continue, Nino began scribbling on a paper, passing it back to Alya when the teacher turned to write something on the board. No one paid attention during Geography, considering it was all memorization. The journalist-to-be nudged Marinette, passing the note over and whispering something in her friend's ear. Scribbling indicated a series of thoughts being bounced back and forth. As the girls conferred, Tikki wormed her way out of the bag, exploring.

-Plagg, are you sure we ought to keep about this entire thing?- She asked, tapping into the cat's mind to talk.

-It's not as if, with Dorgo's reappearance, we need to. Chat's already messed up enough that I'm certain the Wave knows who he is.- The cat responded, happily curled up in a pocket. -And if he's here, Miné will be, too, and Yalu.-

Tikki nodded, even though Plagg couldn't see it. -And since Hawk Moth has Nuru, Ilja has to be somewhere.- She grinned, thinking of the family they had. -Still, we can talk more later. My holder has a few needs.-

Plagg yawned mentally, going to sleep in Adrien's pocket, with a thought of -Get cheese later.-

Of course, neither Adrien or Marinette knew of the communications between Kwami, only that they had a problem to solve. Marinette looked up, around the classroom, and nudged Alya. A bit of nonverbal communication, and the note was carefully passed back to the boys.

'Olivia can photograph you if you come, and then it'll be a chance for her to get some practice as well.' Marinette's handwriting was slightly cute, with loops following the words and making it slightly conjoined. 'Is that OK?'

Adrien rotated around to see that she was hiding her face behind her hands, Alya nudging her and whispering encouragements. He half-smiled, giving the shorter girl a thumbs-up and scribbling something else onto the paper, showing Nino and then passing it back to the girls.

'I'm pretty sure that I'll be able to come. Don't worry about it.' As they read the note, Adrien's phone buzzed twice. Two texts. He flipped it open, one of the numbers familiar. Nathalie, her message saying the shoot was canceled. Convenient. The second was from an odd number, with a Paris area code, but there was no contact in his phone with the number.

'Hello, Chat Noir!' It read, and his phone displayed another text as soon as he finished reading the first message. 'Don't be rude. I'm honestly offended you didn't respond. As a comrade, I thought you would be more polite.' A third message, before he'd even begun typing. 'I thought this would be shocking. Having fun?'

He stared at the screen for a moment. What kind of crazy fangirl was she, if she had his phone number?

"Dude, what's going on?" Nino asked, looking over his shoulder. "Who's texting you?"

"Some fangirl." Adrien put his phone away, looking around curiously. "Not important."

After class, he sent a fast reply, relaxing for a minute. If she had gotten his number, better to verify it. 'Well, are you purr-tain you're not insane?'

'Nah.' Was the fast reply. 'If I was, all of my fights would be much more destructive. The Wave has a reputation, too, you know.'

'Really?' Chat's taunting personality came forwards more and more. 'So are you as honest as entailed?'

'Yes.' She hadn't said much in that, only saying that Plagg was right.

'Then how do you keep people from learning who you are?' Adrien's curiosity was overwhelming.

A long pause, and then a response. 'Silence and vague answers can also be truthful.'

She didn't say anything else, no matter what Adrien sent back. And he spent the rest of the day attempting to get the Wave to reveal something else. Unfortunately, it didn't work. By the time school had let out, he had all sorts of ideas on how he would get her to say her identity, and had to forget about it anyways. Marinette's house called.

Fortunately enough, Nino already knew the way there, so Adrien didn't have to pretend he knew the way because of Chat Noir. When Nino asked why Adrien wasn’t leading the way after the whole video game tournament, Adrien had brushed it off with the fact that he’d been driven there and as such, didn’t know the path from school. The bakery was a nice place, both boys thought, but they didn't know how to handle Marinette's father. The tall baker intimidated everyone, until he cracked a joke that had both boys laughing and groaning until the back door swung open again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry if this sounds off, but my beta and I haven't had much time to work together recently.  
> Anyways, I hope you enjoyed, and I'll see you all as soon as possible!  
> -Beka

**Author's Note:**

> I hope this read well!  
> Please tell me what you thought, and I'll see you when I next post.
> 
> Beka


End file.
